Ship Of The Iceberg: Starpoint Gemini 2

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As we cast our ever-vigilant gaze to the starboard bow, we raise a brow to the sight of Starpoint Gemini 2 gently docking with Steam Early Access, a wild frontier station. We haven’t heard from the space sim/RPG since 2011, when it first appeared, causing Jim to express conflicted thoughts (interesting, but not necessarily enjoyable or robust). The game is now in full 3d and the Gemini system is a cohesive area, with no loading screens to break up the gaps between stars. Players captain one of around seventy ships, controlling a single vessel rather than a fleet, although wingmen will be added at a later date. The developer’s descriptions suggest there will be freedom to explore, salvage and fight, but it’s not entirely clear how early this early access is. Trailer below.

The discussion boards on Steam may help with your decision as to whether it’s wise to access the Gemini system at this early stage.

23 Comments

…causing Jim to express conflicted thoughts (interesting, but not necessarily enjoyable or robust)

That’s a harsh critique of Master Rossignol if ever I heard one!

Starpoint Gemini was one of those games I bounced off of, which made me sad as it promised so much that I normally enjoy. From playing the demo it felt like a sub-standard Starfleet Command. Hopefully this new one will be to my taste. There aren’t enough space games out there doing the RPG-ish, ship-focused adventure thing and any new one should be made welcome.

The original game is one of those games which shows-off Metacritic at it’s best AND worst at the same time.

It’s Metacritic score was 46 – that’s not good news – but it consists of an 80,73,69,57, 55, 45 and *rolls drums* an 18!!

So that’s 5 above average and 2 below – one WELL below. That 18 came from PC Gamer UK – looking at their details on Metacritic they generally score games lower than other outlets – they also have a scarily neat above/below average score – but 18 – EIGHTEEN – is telling you something, isn’t it?

I mention this because if you buy the early access you also get the original game – which may or may not be a good thing!!

For many reviewers these days 60% is a devastatingly bad game, and they don’t believe in the existance of sub-50%. I imagine that this comes from the American system of School/Exam marking… where a pass mark is ~70%.. meaning that describing how well everyone who is even half competent did has to be crammed into the top 30% – which is just silly.

It makes for a low-impulse single-use reaction mass when you need to get around. Just fling it in the opposite direction to the one you wish to travel. You’ll probably still end up face first against the air vent, though.

But using it makes you feel dirty, like driving a nice car where the seats are covered in dried vomit. The experience of one so taints the other that it ruins the experience (in this case, interaction with humans).

The game certainly looks pretty. I thought the original game had potential, too. I think the main thing wrong with it was they made all the weapons fire on a single key, and that just felt really kludgy. Here’s hoping this sequel has a bit more finesse to it.